On Staten Island, a plan to demolish a gracious old home and cram 7 new ones into the same space

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Dr. Joseph McGinn is a highly respected heart surgeon of worldwide renown and his lifestyle reflects that extraordinary level of success. Like many of his colleagues in the medical profession and other prosperous Staten Islanders, he owns a home on an elongated parcel in the heart of Staten Island's most prestigious community, Todt Hill.

But he wants to tear his current 100-year-old house down and replace it with no fewer than seven new houses for members of his family. Those new houses, described by his architect as "modest-sized," would each have a two-car garage and a swimming pool.